TY  - JOUR
AU  - Vas Elisabeth, Lescroël Amélie
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Approaching birds with drones: first experiments and ethical guidelines.
JO  - Biology letters
SP  - 20140754
VL  - 11
IS  - 2
KW  - Aircraft
KW  - Aircraft: ethics
KW  - Aircraft: instrumentation
KW  - Animals
KW  - Behavior
KW  - Animal
KW  - Charadriiformes
KW  - Charadriiformes: physiology
KW  - Color
KW  - Ducks
KW  - Ducks: physiology
KW  - Remote Sensing Technology
KW  - Remote Sensing Technology: ethics
KW  - Remote Sensing Technology: instrumentation
KW  -
N2  - Unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly called drones, are being increasingly used in ecological research, in particular to approach sensitive wildlife in inaccessible areas. Impact studies leading to recommendations for best practices are urgently needed. We tested the impact of drone colour, speed and flight angle on the behavioural responses of mallards Anas platyrhynchos in a semi-captive situation, and of wild flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) and common greenshanks (Tringa nebularia) in a wetland area. We performed 204 approach flights with a quadricopter drone, and during 80% of those we could approach unaffected birds to within 4 m. Approach speed, drone colour and repeated flights had no measurable impact on bird behaviour, yet they reacted more to drones approaching vertically. We recommend launching drones farther than 100 m from the birds and adjusting approach distance according to species. Our study is a first step towards a sound use of drones for wildlife research. Further studies should assess the impacts of different drones on other taxa, and monitor physiological indicators of stress in animals exposed to drones according to group sizes and reproductive status.
SN  - 1744-9561
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2014.0754
N1  - exported from refbase (http://publi.ipev.fr/polar_references/show.php?record=6102), last updated on Wed, 03 Jul 2024 19:26:54 +0200
ID  - VasElisabeth2015
ER  -